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When you go and see the London Gay Men’s Dance Company perform, you’re immediately welcomed into a community space.

Partners, friends and family cheer on their boyfriends, friends and sons in a huge, packed out Troxy in East London.

But even if you didn’t know a single person on that stage, you would be able to feel how much support is in that 3,000 capacity room.

Alex Scurr, the founder of the GMDC, originally started with 24 guys in September 2015.

‘I’ve always had friends who have asked me to teach them how to dance,’ he told GSN.

‘Every single one of those 24 was an amazing person that got behind me and the potential the class had and just helped me.

‘It’s the guys that come that push me to do what I’m doing.’

And you can see why. Now with hundreds of members, Scurr’s company has pushed into a full blown entertainment experience. The GMDC isn’t just a dance company anymore, they also offer singing, drama and pole dancing lessons.

A highlight was seeing ‘rival’ companies from around London fight off in a ‘West Side Story’ style battle.

It was a story of mascs vs fems vs hipsters in a musical theatre performance. And that wasn’t the only great moment from the show. From jaw-dropping pole dancers to a perfectly formed choir, the group of men is always inviting you in to their months of work.

You can see the rehearsals, the work and sweat they’ve put into the show.

That’s probably best seen in a company-wide Britney Spears medley. While the ‘star’ may have been a guest performer, it is only when the stage is packed with guys shaking their pecs that the performance comes alive.

This isn’t a professional dance troupe, but they’re not giving you that expectation.

The GMDC is made up of a community, a bunch of people of all ages and abilities joining in for fun and fitness – and the friendships made outside of dating apps or bars and clubs.

For any gay guy that dreamed of dancing on a stage, you can see it come alive in each one of their eyes even if you’re in the back row.

Soon it won’t just be gay men either. At the performance at The Troxy, Scurr announced he will soon be starting classes for LGBTI women.

‘It’s completely changed my life,’ Scurr said.

‘And I know it’s changed the lives of people who come here. And I’m so grateful to do it.’

You can sign up to GMDC classes here and learn more about the company on their website.